Electron discharge device



July 25, 1939. w. H. MANTHORNE ELECTRON v DIS CHARGE DEVICE Filed Jan.a, 1938 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR W H. MANTHORNE QR mew A 7'TORNE r w 2M v. a M M 7 w M w T .r 9 m V N 2 9 M 9 w w .m 3 H R ft w. H. MANTHORNE'ELECTRON D'ISCHARGE DEVICE Flled Jan 8, 1938 July 25, 1939.

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Patented July 25, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFIQE ELECTRON DISCHARGE.DEVICE Application January 8, 1938, Serial No. 183,961

1 Claim.

This invention relates to electron discharge devices and moreparticularly to vacuum tubes having elements positioned Within theevacuated tubes and adjustable from without as to relative positionWithin the tube.

Vacuum tubes having electrical elements (grids, filaments, plates, etc.)located within an evacuated container of glass, metal or both, are usedin a large variety of circuits in a great va riety of ways. Certainelectrical characteristics of such tubes are largely dependent upon therelative position, either as to intervening distance or relativeorientation or both, of two or more of the elements. In some cases itmay be highly desirable to be able to adjustably alter the relativepositions of two or more of the elements in order to controllably varyone or another electrical characteristic of the tube or device inquestion.

An object of the present invention is to provide simple, effective andreliable means to adjustably alter, by displacement or rotation or both,the position of one or more of the elements of a vacuum tube relativelyto the body of the tube.

With the above and other objects in view the invention may be embodiedin a vacuum tube in which a distortable corrugated metal tube, such asthose known commercially under the tradename Sylphon, has an open endcommunicating with the evacuated body of the vacuum tube and has aclosed end connected with one of the elements of the vacuum tube,together with means external to the vacuum tube and Sylphon to expand orcontract the latter and thereby modify the position of the element withrespect to the body of the vacuum tube.

Other objects and features of the invention will appear from thefollowing detailed description of embodiments thereof taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings in which the same referencenumerals are applied to essentially identical parts in the severalfigures and in Which Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic broken view partly insection of a vacuum tube constructed in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is a similar View of another form thereof; and

Fig. 3 is a similar view of a third form.

In the embodiment of the invention disclosed in Fig. 1, a vacuum tubecomprises a hollow glass body 211 having a tubular metallic extension 2|sealed rigidly thereto. A metal collar 22 is rigidly sealed on the outersurface of the outer end of the extension 2|, e. g., by soldering,brazing or the like, and one of the elements I9 of the tube is mountedwithin the body 2!) on the inner portion of the extension 2|.

A circumferentially deeply corrugated and therefore variouslydistortable metal tube or Sylphon 24 has its inner or upper end rigidlysealed to the outer or lower face of the collar 22 and has its outer orlower end rigidly sealed to a glass insulating tube 25. A metal cap 26is rigidly sealed to and closes the outer end of the tube 25 and thusalso the body 20. A second element l8 of the tube is mounted on the cap2t and extends up into the body 20 to stand adjacent to and to coactelectrically with the element 19, passing without contact through theglass tube 25 and the Sylphon tube 24.

The stationary collar 22 has an outer peripheral groove 21 whichreceives a complementary annular tongue formed on a rotatable collar 28encircling the collar 22, and formed integrally within the upper end ofa hollow cylinder 29, which surrounds the Sylphon 24 and is formed onthe inner side of its lower portion with a screw thread. This thread isengaged by the correspondingly threaded outer periphery of a collar 30which encircles and is rigidly secured to the lower end of the Sylphon.The outer surface of the lower portion of the adjusting cylinder orsleeve 29 may be knurled for convenience of manipulation, as at 3|.

It is to be noted that the element l9 of Fig. 1 is presumed to beidentically like that of Fig. 2 in structure, but only two of its threeupright legs are shown because of the section.

The purpose of the arrangement disclosed in Fig. 1 is to enableadjustment of the element I8 by vertical displacement with respect tothe body and hence with respect to the stationary element l9. This maybe accomplished by rotating the sleeve 29 compelling the collar 30 toapproach toward or recede from the collar 22, thus by distortioncontracting or expanding the Sylphon tube 24 and moving the element l8correspondingly up or down.

In the embodiment disclosed in Fig. 2, a vacuum tube has a composite,hollow, evacuated body consisting of a metal cylindrical portion 20!with glass ends 202 and 203 rigidly sealed thereto. An element ll of thetube is suitably mounted in the glass cap 202 and extends stationarilydown within the body of the tube. Another element IQ of the tube extendsupwardly within the body of the tube to be adjacent to and to coactelectrically with the element I1.

The element i9 is mounted on a metal cylinder 32 which fits snugly butwith freedom to rotate in the metal cap 26'which is rigidly sealed toand closes the tubularly extended lower portion of the glass cap 283.

The open left end of a horizontally disposed Sylphon 24 is rigidlysealed into and communicates through the side of the tubularly extendedcap 203, and has its right end integrally closed. Collars 22 and 30 andadjustment sleeve 29 are mounted externally on the sylphon as in Fig. 1.

The cylinder 32 on which the element l9 is mounted is formed with acircumferential groove in the bottom of which is a pinion 33 engaged bya rack 34 rigidly secured to the inner face of the closed end of theSylphon;

Thus rotation of the sleeve 29 efiects reciprocation of the rack 34 andhence rotation of the cylinder 32.. Thus the element i9 carried by thecylinder 32 may be rotatably adjusted relatively to the stationaryelement l7.

In the embodiment, disclosed in Figs. 3 and 4, a vacuum tube has ahollow, evacuated composite body consisting of a metal cylinder Ziliwith glass end caps EGZ'and 293. A Sylphon 15-32 has its open lower endsealed rigidly into and communicating through the glass cap 2&2, and-asecond Sylphon 2 34 has its open lower end rigidly sealed into andcommunicating through the otherwise closed upper end of the Sylphon 232. A third Sylphon 243 has its upper open end ri idly sealed into andcommunicating through the lower glass cap 203, and a-fourth-Slyphoniififi has its upper open end sealed into andcommunicatingthrcugh the otherwise closed lower end of the Sylphon Aglass insulator tube is rigidly sealed at its upper end to the openlower end of the Sylphon 245 andhas its lower end rigidly sealed to andclosed .by a metal cap 26. a

The element ll of the tube is mounted rigidly in the closed upper end ofthe Sylphon 244, the element 58 is rigidly mounted on the cap 26, andthe element la is mounted on a tubular upward extension of the lower endof the Sylphon 2&3 which is also therefor an extension of the upper endof the Sylphon 245.

The lower end of the Sylphon 243 is rigidly secured externally in astationary. support 225, thus making the lower end of 2 33 and the upperend of 235 rigidly stationary. A collar S05 is secured externally on thelower end of 245 and is threaded to coact with the internally threadedadjustment sleeve 295 which is rotatable in the disk 275. The

disk 215 is supported on the members 225 by bolts which pass throughslots in the disk 21:: and thus permit the disk to be shifted laterallyon the support 225. Set screws 37 in the disk and bearing against themember 225 may be used to tilt the disk 275 at a small and adjustableangle to the member 225.

Since a Sylphon has a considerable degree of lateral flexibility, theSylphon 245 which supports the element l8 permits the latter to be movedvertically up and down by manipulation of the sleeve 295, to be tiltedby adjustment of the set screws 31, and to be shifted bodilyhorizontally as well as rotated to a small extent by shifting the diskUS on the support 225.

A mcments inspection will show that the construction at the upper end ofthe vacuum tube is -.substantially the same, so that by similar meansthe element ll may be moved up and down, bodily horizontally, tilted orrotated.

1 The metal part 28! of the body of the tube is thickened and groovedperipherally at 30 and is encircled by a-correspondingly tongued collar4| carried on arms or a disk 12 supported by a stationary member ormembers 33, the disk 42 being slotted around the bolts 4 to permit oflateral bodily displacement of the cylinder 20], made possible by theflexibility of the Sylphons 262 and 2&3. As the cylinder 26! may well bemade to functionas an electrical .element of the vacuum tube, this lastadjustability may be of importance.

Considering the three embodiments disclosed and the possiblecombinations of element mountings in or in connection with Sylphonetubes, it is evident that an element of a tube may thus be mounted andarranged to have substantially any kind of adjustability relatively toanother element.

The invention is therefore not limited to the precise embodimentsdisclosed, but is limited only bythe appended claim.

What is claimed is:

A vacuum tube having a hollow evacuated body, a corrugated metaldistortable tube sealed to and communicating with the interior of thebody, a rotatable support within the body, an electrical element mountedon the support, means connecting the support to the metal tube to rotatethe support when the metal tube is distorted, and external means todistort the metal tube and thereby rotate the support and the element.

WILLIAM H. MANTHORNE.

